Photo by Rachel Stone.
A traffic study conducted by city staff found that a traffic island temporarily installed at Edgefield Avenue and Ninth Street in Winnetka Heights slowed traffic and significantly decreased the number of speeding cars in the area.
The island was installed in August 2022 and was meant to determine the effects of such a change on slowing neighborhood traffic.
The findings of that study found that the average speed of cars slowed two miles per hour once the island was installed, dropping from 25 miles per hour to 23 miles per hour.
The percentage of cars driving over 30 miles per hour dropped from 16% to 9.5% after the island was installed.
The Winnetka Heights Neighborhood Association worked with City Councilman Chad West and the city’s Transportation Department to have the island built in the neighborhood after neighbors became increasingly concerned about speeding cars and traffic in the area.
